New to Universal...A little help please!

[amy1115]

We have been to Disney several times, and are going back in May. This time we are adding in at least 2 Universal days. We have the 3rd day free ticket so are going to play it by ear on a possible 3rd day. I see that Universal is more relaxed than Disney as far as touring plans go, but would still like to have a general idea of how to tour before going in. I have looked at Orlando Informer, but it's soooo much info that I just end up not getting anywhere when I try to get some kind of plan together. Here are the main things we want to accomplish:

1. HARRY POTTER EVERTHING!! My husband is a huge fan of Harry Potter so this is our main reason for going. The rest of the family are fans too, but not to his extent lol. Want to do all the rides preferably more than once if possible, and also just take in the whole HP area. Kids (Daughter, Nephew, both 11) want to do the interactive wands too.

2. Other rides that we must do are: Minions, Transformers, Spiderman, and the water rides for sure.

Any tips/advice on a good order for these things? We are staying offsite and won't have Early entry or Express Pass. Our 2 days we are for sure going are May 20th (Daughter's b-day) and May 21st. Thanks in advance for any help. We are so excited to be trying something new.

 

[damo]

Your husband is going to be in his glory. Universal has done an excellent job with both of the Harry Potter sections in the parks. What I would do is see what park has early admission the days you will be there and plan to start as the opposite park. https://www.universalorlando.com/Resort-Information/Early-Park-Admission.aspx
Looks like early admission will be at the Studios for your dates.

Since you want to do the interactive wands, keep an eye on Ollivanders. If the line is long, perhaps just purchase the wands in the wand shop instead of doing the show at IOA. The lines are much shorter for the wand show at the Studios.

Parks tend to open about 15 minutes early, so I would be in line way before that. Head straight to the Harry Potter area and get your fill. Then hop on the Hogwarts Express and go to the other Harry Potter section. I find that doing them back to back works really well in maintaining that Harry Potter experience.

After that, start checking wait times and just ride accordingly.

There will be a few rides that have really long lines such as Despicable Me and Rip Ride Rockit. Keep an eye on those if they are necessities.

Also keep an eye out for soft openings for Reign of Kong. You might get lucky!

 

[johde]

You might want to stop by guest services after you enter the park and get a birthday button for your daughter.

On 1 of your days, I'd hit Despicable Me and Rip Ride Rockit and Rope Drop. Those rides can get backed up worse than even the HP rides.

 

[amy1115]

You might want to stop by guest services after you enter the park and get a birthday button for your daughter.

On 1 of your days, I'd hit Despicable Me and Rip Ride Rockit and Rope Drop. Those rides can get backed up worse than even the HP rides.

I was just about to ask about the need to hit Minions first. How much of a disadvantage will we have since Studios opens early both days? I was thinking we would do Minions and Rip Ride first thing on the second day before heading to HP, but will there already be a significant wait due to the early entry crowd? Would it make more sense to try to do minions at park close?

 

[samheatherwhite]

If the minion line is too long you might try right at the end of the day. I have heard many people do this and it shortens their wait time considerably.

 

[amy1115]

If the minion line is too long you might try right at the end of the day. I have heard many people do this and it shortens their wait time considerably.

Is Universal's policy like Disney's....you can get in line all the way up to park close and still be able to ride, even if the wait is like 30 minutes still?

 

[JustCallMeMommy]

I like to start at Harry Potter, stay until the area gets really crowded, do other things in the park until 6 or 7, and return to HP. We try to get the express pass if at all possible - either by purchasing it or staying onsite.

We were there in May last year around the same time, and the crowds were not bad. We avoided any long lines that there might have been by using a combination of the express pass and single rider lines. DD doesn't like big outdoor coasters, so we didn't pay much attention to those lines.

We did the Shutterbuttons thing last time - you dress in wizard robes and stand in front of a green screen. A team member tells you what to do, and you end up with a moving picture CD of different scenes in the Wizarding World. For a party of huge HP fans, it was really fun!

 

[amy1115]

I like to start at Harry Potter, stay until the area gets really crowded, do other things in the park until 6 or 7, and return to HP. We try to get the express pass if at all possible - either by purchasing it or staying onsite.

We were there in May last year around the same time, and the crowds were not bad. We avoided any long lines that there might have been by using a combination of the express pass and single rider lines. DD doesn't like big outdoor coasters, so we didn't pay much attention to those lines.

We did the Shutterbuttons thing last time - you dress in wizard robes and stand in front of a green screen. A team member tells you what to do, and you end up with a moving picture CD of different scenes in the Wizarding World. For a party of huge HP fans, it was really fun!

That sounds fun! Is there an extra cost for that, and if so do you remember how much?

 

[johde]

Is Universal's policy like Disney's....you can get in line all the way up to park close and still be able to ride, even if the wait is like 30 minutes still?

Yes, with a couple of caveats. During the early days of Diagon Alley when the lines for Gringotts were hours long they would shut down the line to new people before closing. But, they would still let the people in line ride (unless the ride broke down which was common in the early days). But, like I said, that's the exception. During that time, the needed those overnight hours to get the ride ready for the next day. But, just to play it safe, if closing time is 8:00 I would hit the ride at 7:40 instead of 7:59.

 

[JustCallMeMommy]

That sounds fun! Is there an extra cost for that, and if so do you remember how much?

There is a cost - and the package I bought included a 3 day photopass, so it was not cheap. I prepurchased, but I am not finding it with a quick search right now. Hopefully, someone else has looked for it lately.

 

[amy1115]

Thank you all for the great info. Another question...I downloaded the Touring Plans line wait app. In your experience, is it pretty accurate?

 

[Heidi K]

I can't speak to the TP lines app, we used a different one and it was quite inaccurate.

I did want to say that you will get SOAKED on the water rides. We rented a family locker near the entrance and put dry clothes and a towel in it, and after riding all three water rides in a row, we headed to the entrance to change.

We liked the touring plans at the Orlando Informer website. You could just skip the rides in the plan that you're less interested in.

 

[amy1115]

I can't speak to the TP lines app, we used a different one and it was quite inaccurate.

I did want to say that you will get SOAKED on the water rides. We rented a family locker near the entrance and put dry clothes and a towel in it, and after riding all three water rides in a row, we headed to the entrance to change.

We liked the touring plans at the Orlando Informer website. You could just skip the rides in the plan that you're less interested in.

I have heard a LOT of talk about the soakings. Lol. I had been trying to decide how we would do the water rides. I like your idea. Do you remember how much the family locker fee was? I had also considered saving them for later in the day so at least we would be almost done and not have to walk around soaked for long.

 

[bchbetha]

The official Universal app is worth getting. The wait times were accurate. The map and guide me features are quite handy too. Be sure to manage your settings if you have an iPhone as the default is for location services to always be on- which kills batteries.

 

[Heidi K]

I have heard a LOT of talk about the soakings. Lol. I had been trying to decide how we would do the water rides. I like your idea. Do you remember how much the family locker fee was? I had also considered saving them for later in the day so at least we would be almost done and not have to walk around soaked for long.

I thought it was around $18 or $20, but then I realized I still have the credit card bill from the trip last month--I checked that, and it was $12. The locker was large and there are bathrooms right next door. I think doing the water rides on the way out is also a good idea, although if you're driving your car will get wet!

 

[amy1115]

The official Universal app is worth getting. The wait times were accurate. The map and guide me features are quite handy too. Be sure to manage your settings if you have an iPhone as the default is for location services to always be on- which kills batteries.

Great! Thank you.

 

[amy1115]

I thought it was around $18 or $20, but then I realized I still have the credit card bill from the trip last month--I checked that, and it was $12. The locker was large and there are bathrooms right next door. I think doing the water rides on the way out is also a good idea, although if you're driving your car will get wet!

Thanks for checking. $12 sounds much better. Really good to know there's a bathroom right by them too. I can handle wet shirt/shorts, but the under garments....not so much.

 

[CyndiLooWho]

Even getting there at rope drop, we never saw the line for Minions at less than 45 minutes, so we never rode it last trip (early June). But we found that the lines at HP weren't too bad either early or late in the day. HE never backed up too much, and it was a superb way to change from park to park.

We saved the water rides and did all of them together. The guys wore board shorts with cargo pockets and loose rash guards / dry tek shirts. I didn't ask if they wore underwear, but I know that every one of them had quick-dry hiking underwear if they didn't want to go commando. I wore an activewear skort / shirt combo with microfiber undies and bra. We all had our Keen H2 sandals. It was definitely the way to go. I sat out Popeye so I did not get the drenching of a lifetime, but the guys thought their gear was perfect for that. Once we were done with wet rides, we went back to the condo and had lunch and lazed around before coming back to the park in the evening to shop and hang out.

Also, by not rushing to the HP sections every day, we walked on to almost everything and were ready to head out soon after lunch most days. We never waited more than 15 min for anything not HP related, except Spiderman, and the time the boys rode Simpsons. It was awesome.

And this was with us staying in a condo offsite, with no express passes.

 

[Mom of a great kid]

We have been to Disney several times, and are going back in May. This time we are adding in at least 2 Universal days. We have the 3rd day free ticket so are going to play it by ear on a possible 3rd day. I see that Universal is more relaxed than Disney as far as touring plans go, but would still like to have a general idea of how to tour before going in. I have looked at Orlando Informer, but it's soooo much info that I just end up not getting anywhere when I try to get some kind of plan together. Here are the main things we want to accomplish:

1. HARRY POTTER EVERTHING!! My husband is a huge fan of Harry Potter so this is our main reason for going. The rest of the family are fans too, but not to his extent lol. Want to do all the rides preferably more than once if possible, and also just take in the whole HP area. Kids (Daughter, Nephew, both 11) want to do the interactive wands too.

2. Other rides that we must do are: Minions, Transformers, Spiderman, and the water rides for sure.

Any tips/advice on a good order for these things? We are staying offsite and won't have Early entry or Express Pass. Our 2 days we are for sure going are May 20th (Daughter's b-day) and May 21st. Thanks in advance for any help. We are so excited to be trying something new.

 

[Mom of a great kid]

Don't worry about not having Express pass--that won't work for most Harry Potter rides anyway. All the water rides are together in Islands of Adventure--recommend you get a map and start for toon lagoon in the morning. Ride water rides early so your clothes will dry. See other attractions as time permits. The train does require park-to-park passes. Hope this helps.